The great soldier

The garden is fairly well-populated with the Chilean Tropaeolum speciosum, the so-called Scotch Flame Flower, whose bright red flowers grab a lot of attention at this time of year.

Less flamboyant and totally thug-free is its brother, Tropaeolum polyphyllum, from the Andes of Chile and Argentina where it's known as 'soldadito grande de la cordillera' (great soldier of the mountains), for some reason! This lovely sprawler grows from a large tuber and disappears underground after flowering. Ours grows on a sunny bank above the top lawn. The dark leaves at the top of the photograph are of the shrub Cotinus 'Grace'.